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Thistle Soaps has commissioned its first ever Soap Scent Survey for 2013, to find out which scents are the nation's favourites and which qualities matter most in a scented soap.

With overall growth last year in the scented soaps market at a record level, and Thistle Soaps becoming a new acquisition for fast-growing Best Kept Secrets, the business embarked on a significant piece of research to find out what people love about scented soaps.

The research was conducted independently via a series of online surveys and focus group activities, with 403 respondents. The research revealed the following:

• Rosey Geranium with Ylang Ylang is the most popular scent for a soap (nine per cent rated this in their top three soap fragrances), closely followed by Nettle and Mint and Orange and Patchouli.• The Countryside range of Seriously Scented Soaps from Thistle Soaps offers the best overall scent (13 per cent rated this as their top range of scented soaps).• Soap texture was rated as the most important feature in a scented soap, with scent and colour as equally important attributes.• The quality of soap is being assessed through a range of senses, with touch and smell being rated equally in discerning overall value and quality of a product. A preference for matt finishes over gloss finishes was voted by an overwhelming 81 per cent of those participating in the survey.• Scented soaps in a block are seen as a gift item, whereas liquid soaps are seen as a daily convenience according to the survey. In terms of preference for fragranced cleansing products, soap was rated as the best product to receive as a gift.• Purchases from stores as opposed to online was another overwhelming statistic from the survey, with 92 per cent of respondents stating they only ever bought soap from a shop, and with regard to gifts, soap was considered a desirable purchase. Therefore, despite strong growth in online sales, customers still like to touch and feel a product when making a purchase.

Alan Edwards from Thistle Soaps said: “We acquired Thistle Soaps earlier in 2013 and the response at recent trade shows has been excellent. Having already run a scented candle survey, we wanted to repeat the exercise and get an independent view on the product range, and this type of survey generates so much more of an insight. The market for scented soaps and high quality soap bars have grown significantly through the last five years, despite the economic climate. The product is great value and offers a little luxury, which makes it an affordable but special gift purchase.

“As we already have a real understanding of the candles market, this survey provides a real customer perspective on soaps and will help us devise new product ranges in the coming years. We will be able to run this survey annually and use the results to assess the trends in the market. This is great for Thistle Soaps, but also excellent research for our large independent retail customer base.”

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